The first doc we saw at KKCH - Lydia Cheong, told us that children of women who have asthma will usually get it. If Dad has it but not Mom, then the likelihood is lower. So I, who still have asthma to this day, must not have any more children d:) (Ok this last part is my own, not the doctor's.)
I also learnt that:
1. Steroids eg. Prednisolone can help to suppress inflammation, but a side effect is that they also suppress your immune system.
2. Salbutamol (aka Ventolin) MDI (metered dose inhaler) cannot be addictive, although a lot of people, especially old folks, seem to believe so, and also that, once you start using that, you're done for and will be totally reliant on it. Instead, it is the steroids which are addictive.
3. The Chamber is definitely better than the Nebuliser when it comes to children, simply because a dose of the Neb will take at least 10-15 min, whereas the Chamber will only need less than 5. And when you have a Hercules who refuses to have anything put to his face, it makes all the difference. We would still be in trouble if KKCH did not use the Chamber.
4. Promethazine, amongst its other uses, is most commonly used as a cough suppressant, but this can only be given for dry cough. If the child has phlegm, suppressing the cough is a no-no.
5. Mucosol dissolves the phlegm and also works as an expectorant, so some people actually cough more after taking this.
6. Fluimucil dissolves the phlegm totally away, so it is more ideal for children (and perhaps adults too). We had to pay for this at the Emergency Pharmacy, so it is definitely outside the range of standard drugs. We didn't have to pay for the Salbutamol (MDI and syrup), Pred, Promethazine, or nose drops.
does keith have to use it everyday even if he's not wheezing or coughing?
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